Imaging systems include an image capture device for capturing images of objects. Significant changes in image quality may occur, however, as a function of the depth of the objects relative to the image capture device. As an example, when the image capture device is a camera, a focal point of the camera will move relative to the objects as the camera moves towards or away from the objects. To compensate for such depth changes, digital cameras are commonly provided with an autofocus (AF) feature. As described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,782,392 B2, conventional electronic camera systems may provide an autofocus feature using either the contrast (e.g., blur) of the captured image or a determined depth value of an object within the field of view of the camera. The depth value may be determined using reflected light and principles of triangulation. In addition to providing an autofocus feature, automatic exposure control (AE) may also be provided to determine the brightness of the object and adjust exposure.
In each of these examples, a control element of the image capture device is adjusted to improve the image quality of captured images. Sometimes, however, either a control element is not available to improve the overall image quality of the captured images or only a portion of the captured image is desired to be modified. In these cases, alternative solutions are desirable.